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RMWMTMBM Archive

Female Brains Are Prettier, More Fun At Parties, Less Tasty

June 9, 2024 Leigh M. Johnson Philosophy, Politics, RMWMTMBM Archive, Women and Gender Issues Comments Off on Female Brains Are Prettier, More Fun At Parties, Less Tasty

I almost titled this “Once More Into The Breach, Part Deux” in reference to my Once More Into The Breach, Dear Friends post from last week, which criticized the way in which conversations about gender disparity in professional Philosophy continue to be framed by concept-distorting and argument-disfiguring gender essentialism.  My targets today are not “philosophers”…

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31 Day Film Challenge, Day 14: A Film You Used To Love But Now Hate

June 9, 2024 Leigh M. Johnson 31 Day Film Challenge, Film, Pop Culture/Film/Literature, RMWMTMBM Archive Comments Off on 31 Day Film Challenge, Day 14: A Film You Used To Love But Now Hate

My pick for today is American Beauty (1993), Sam Mendes’

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Not With A Bang, But A Whimper: RIP Wild Bill’s Memphis

June 9, 2024 Leigh M. Johnson Memphis, Music, RMWMTMBM Archive Comments Off on Not With A Bang, But A Whimper: RIP Wild Bill’s Memphis

Alas, it is with great sadness that I report that the long-anticipated but much-dreaded inevitability in my life finally came to pass. Wild Bill’s is officially closed. The doors closed without ceremony or fanfare early last month.  Like every other time before, there were a few weeks when I hoped that this was a false…

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Tortured Reasoning

June 9, 2024 Leigh M. Johnson Human Rights, Philosophy, Politics, RMWMTMBM Archive Comments Off on Tortured Reasoning

I haven’t posted much on human rights recently, the primary focus of my research, though I continue to plug away at thinking and writing about it every day. One of the topics that I spend a lot of time with is torture, an issue that I intend to use as the go-to “case study” in…

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President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Address

June 9, 2024 Leigh M. Johnson Obama, Politics, RMWMTMBM Archive Comments Off on President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Address

Text of President Obama’s Inaugural Address: My fellow citizens: I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout…

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Obama’s 2009 Address to Joint Session of Congress

June 9, 2024 Leigh M. Johnson Obama, Politics, RMWMTMBM Archive Comments Off on Obama’s 2009 Address to Joint Session of Congress

Madame Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, and the First Lady of the United States: I’ve come here tonight not only to address the distinguished men and women in this great chamber, but to speak frankly and directly to the men and women who sent us here. I know that for many Americans watching…

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2011 in Viral Videos

June 3, 2024 Dr. J RMWMTMBM Archive Comments Off on 2011 in Viral Videos

[Note: The following should have posted on Dec 30.] There’s nothing like a good viral video to add a chuckle to your day, and 2010 had a lot of chuckles to share. This was probably the first year that I noticed YouTube videos making it onto the “real” news fairly regularly. As we now live…

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Hotel Bar Sessions podcast: A brief history

July 23, 2021 Leigh M. Johnson Hotel Bar Sessions, Philosophy, podcast, Public Philosophy, RMWMTMBM Archive Comments Off on Hotel Bar Sessions podcast: A brief history

I can’t be sure who’s still regularly checking in on this blog, but those of you who are have surely noticed that I’ve shifted my energies from blogging to podcasting over the last year. Beginning in November 2020, I did a 22-episode run of my first podcast BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS, in which I interviewed philosophers,…

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BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS, Ep 22: “Smithereens” with James Buchanan Wallace

March 5, 2021 Leigh M. Johnson Black Mirror, Black Mirror Reflections, Blog 2023+, Ethics, Philosophy, RMWMTMBM Archive, Technology, Technology and Human Values Comments Off on BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS, Ep 22: “Smithereens” with James Buchanan Wallace

  For Episode 22 (our last episode!), I am joined by Dr. James Buchanan “Bru” Wallace to talk about religion, techniques of the self, guilt, the imperative to look up from your screen and really see others, and “Smithereens” (Season 5, Episode 2 of Black Mirror), which first premiered in 2019. Dr. James Buchanan Wallace, known…

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BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS, Ep 21: “Hang the DJ” with John Torrey

February 28, 2021 Leigh M. Johnson Black Mirror, Black Mirror Reflections, Blog 2023+, Ethics, Philosophy, Public Philosophy, RMWMTMBM Archive, Technology, Technology and Human Values Comments Off on BLACK MIRROR REFLECTIONS, Ep 21: “Hang the DJ” with John Torrey

  For Episode 21, I am joined by Dr. John Torrey to talk about whether or not we each have (and can find) “The One,” dating apps, the freedom to make bad choices, simulated relationships, and “Hang the DJ” (Season 4, Episode 4 of Black Mirror), which first premiered in 2017. This is the penultimate…

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